The smell of a hot dog stand. Muffled party music that comes from a bar a block away. Shadows of pedestrians wondering on the side walk. Red neon lights of a nearby bowling alley.

Cities spark a wide range of sensations. When so many lives gather in one place, it is hard not to be surprised every time you walk out of the door. Everyone has a different way of capturing beauty, mine is my Fujifilm camera. The view finder puts me closer to the city that surrounds me. Different lenses gift me with unique perspectives on what, otherwise, would be a standardized view. The essence of a city, its true identity, can be only perceived with a prolonged interaction with its streets. Even when I don’t have my camera on my side, my eyes instinctively look for the next picture to take. The attention I have towards small details, such as lights, composition and the expression on people’ faces around me, allows me to grasp more of every second spent in Detroit.

Have I understood the authentic nature of this city yet? No, but every day I spend here I get closer to it. The alternation of skyscrapers and abandoned warehouses in the span of few miles makes it harder to understand what this city really is. Is it the Detroit of the bankruptcy, or is it the city of Quicken loans and Shinola. When I started taking pictures here I wanted to capture this duality. I think that the only way of capturing a dual nature is with a double exposure. Two frames that form one single picture. Being able to think through how to match two frames to tell something about the city opened me to new perspectives on the city itself.

Detroiters are proud of the city they live in. The fresh breeze brought by the urban restoration is contagious. Here, there is a stronger sense of community than in many cities. Hope and hard work connect the people who want to make a difference. I try and give my pictures this breeze, this wind of change.​